Economical.
Comfortable.
Estate.
Not mega mileage on the clock.
Up to 6k.
Not a Skoda.

Mondeo.

Focus (or a mondeo)

Define economical, the petrol does 40-42mpg, the diesel 50+, but the diesel would need 4 completely reliable years to payback the differene in price and £6k would probbaly be looking at 60k mileage, which puts you within 4 years of the 100,000mile diesel self distruct button where the DMF, turbo, injectors and fuel pump all seem to go wrong.

100,000mile diesel self distruct button where the DMF, turbo, injectors and fuel pump all seem to go wrong

Can of worms well and truly opened.

That sort of money would get you a lot of Mondeo (Ghia or Titanium X for nice extras), petrol vs diesel would depend on your mileage. If you go for diesel the above is kind of true – these things CAN all go wrong if it’s not looked after. Higher mileage + FSH (invoices etc as a record of what’s been done and when, not just ‘stamps in the book’) would trump low mileage (potentially lots of short trips….?) and no history.

Mazda 6 diesel looks tempting. There are reports of the DPF clogging up, however there are also a few places that will remove the offending article and maintain MoT requirements.

For 6k you’ll get a low mileage one.

Passat or Mondeo I guess (although Octavia would have been the obvious answer, why not a Skoda?). You’ll be looking at 50k+ miles though and both have known issues. Depends what engine size you want to as some of the smaller engined estates have pretty crappy performance

Vauxhall Vectra 1.9cdti exclusiv (with no e on exclusive…that’s how exclusive it is). Uber comfy seats and galactic boot.

Re: Skoda – I can’t get passed the name either.

Skoda – I can’t get passed the name either.

yet in the same breath you suggest…

Vauxhall Vectra

odd.

The Vectra would have to have a galactic boot, there’s sod all storage space anywhere else to put anything.

yet in the same breath you suggest…

Vauxhall Vectra

odd.

Must be some sort of weird inverse status thing I imagine, where for irony he wants to be seen in the least fashionable brand possible….

I drive a Vectra for ironic reasons.

Cougar – really? loads in the Mk3

If by Mk3 you mean the Vectra C, I’m open to suggestions as to where you’d conveniently carry, say, a 1.5L bottle of Volvic, as is my wont for long journeys.

The door pockets are useful if you need to carry a sheet of tissue paper or a blade of grass I guess.

The door pockets are useful if you need to carry a sheet of tissue paper or a blade of grass I guess.

😆

Mondeo.

For 6k you could get a decent mileage 57 plate TDCI Titanium (maybe) with a spec to die for. It’s a cavernous car, comfy and economical too. What more do you want?

Having driven a Mazda 6 sport diesel saloon for around 8 months (getting rid in 2 weeks for a Q5) I would definitely have the estate version as the car runs very smooth, goes well when I want it to and in 8 months have had 0 issues. All be it this is an 2008 car with only 45K on the clock and is in fact an emergency response vehicle, its a very nice drive and even the 08 sport one I have can be had for around £8000.

EDIT: Forgot about boot space…In the saloon version I reckon I could fit 3 adult bikes with relative ease, I have already managed 2 easily.

Flowergirl just swapped her AudiA3 for a Skoda Yeti – take it from me the Skoda is miles better.

Oh man a Skoda Yeti…You know I had the choice of swapping the above Mazda for a Skoda Yeti or an Audi Q5, you know the price difference wasn’t even enough to justify such a downgrade as that…

Cougar – 2x500ml in the drinks holders behind the hand brake is normally enough for me. I’ve never seen a drinks holder take a 1.5l sized bottle before.

Flowergirl just swapped her AudiA3 for a Skoda Yeti – take it from me the Skoda is miles better.

Come on ! Both cars are from the same manufacturing group in any case but to say Yeti is superior to an A3.

Cougar – 2x500ml in the drinks holders behind the hand brake is normally enough for me. I’ve never seen a drinks holder take a 1.5l sized bottle before.

Stashing a bottle down the side of the seat used to work fine in the Cavalier. (-:

In seriousness: I’ve had two Vectra C’s, a posh Elite and a cattle-class Club, and I think the only real complaint I had (other than the DAB radio needing retuning every 20 yards and the exterior paint having the thickness and resilience of a dragonfly’s foreskin) was the lack of sensible cockpit storage. Me being deliberately awkward with water bottles aside, there’s still a dearth of stash space.

Is it mainly a ford issue the dmf,injectors etc at around 100k.

I am looking for a car have been thinking of at

1) 05-06 ish Mondeo Mk3 130 or 155 tdci (estate or hatch)
Is this just a case of looking at the history etc and hoping it doesn’t go tits up.

2) Accord 2.2 would probably high miles
Could be expensive to repair but no dmf etc.

3) Civic 2.2 100k ish
Does this engine suffer the same issues or similar as the ford?

4) Early version of mk4 mondeo but really getting out of my price range. You do get great spec ones. Are these going to run into problems at 100-120k with full history.

(At the price,age & spec of vehicle I don’t see a great deal of difference in purchase price between a petrol or diesel.) There is wide difference in prices for the same car though.

Touran?

What??

Sensible suggestion no?

I can see if you’re a premier league footballer and need a decent badged car to fit in with the Bentleys and Porsches in the car park then a Skoda is a no-no but seriously, you’re looking at Fords, Mazdas, Vauxhalls etc. and you have badge-snobbery? lol

+1 on the touran,

Yeah but Skodas are generally **** ugly, that’s the problem.

Citroen C5

Octavia VRS estates seem less ugly once you realise how easy they make it to overtake.

Myself I’m in a 52 plate Focus TDdi, 197K on the clock, no serious issues yet. The perk of an older car, less time-bombs built in 🙂

I’m sorry, but the Superb estate is not an ugly car. It’s also cavernous in the boot and very well appointed. Granted, it’s not likely you’ll get one for under 6k, but they are lovely cars.

As above about the VRs though. I looked at getting one before deciding they were out of my budget and buying a Passat instead. As a fast estate car though, they would be the on to go for. It would be the perfect size for me.

I actually drive a C Vectra and would consider another (I don’t do mineral water) if the turbo issues that the current one has end up being terminal.

I don’t dislike them. The Elite in particular was a largely decent motor. Just found them slightly irritating in niggly little ways.

the 100,000mile diesel self distruct button where the DMF, turbo, injectors and fuel pump all seem to go wrong

That’s bolx. They are things that go wrong sometimes, but there’s no time limit where they all suddenly go wrong together.

Mondeo, Focus, Mazda 6, Astra, Honda Accord. I ended up with a Mondeo, but could have been happy with any of those 5. Focus is astonishingly big inside considering its footprint, it’s actually easier to get my downhill bike into my old Focus than my Mondeo. Mind you, once it’s in, it rattles inside the mondeo 😉

If I could’ve found a nice 2.0 TDCI Focus, I’d have had that- fantastic package. But 9/10ths of the used ones on the market seem to have the orrible 1.6 engine in them or the 1.8 diesel.

thisisnotaspoon – Member

which puts you within 4 years of the 100,000mile diesel self distruct button where the DMF, turbo, injectors and fuel pump all seem to go wrong.

Ford must have forgotten to fit the button to my 2. Typical bad workmanship 😉

MONDEO ONLY if it was an auto diesel. Manual diesel will onetime…only once bite you and wipe out all savings.

Otherwise using your criteria; Honda.

Harry – turbo issues could be a stuck EGR valve. Bung a garage £50 and they’ll clean it out for you. 1hour job tops.

Is it mainly a ford issue the dmf,injectors etc at around 100k

Not at all it’s pretty much any modern diesel engine from any brand.

passat?

id have a skoda over a vauxhall anyday…

Toyota Avensis estate … automatic …

I have an Accord tourer diesel and love it. However as someone already mentioned the injectors on pretty much any modern diesel can go and are costly to replace.

The Honda diesel does have a DMF (Dual Mass Flywheel) but I’m not aware of it being particularly problematic. However the clutch can be a bit pants, mine is slipping now and again at 87,000 miles. An uprated replacement from Honda (including fitting) are around £800. There is a place up in Leeds that will fit an even more uprated clutch (paddle) and also replace the DMF whilst they’re in there for £1000 or there abouts. The fitting is so expensive as the engine has to be lowered slightly, although not completely dropped.

For your price you can get a decent Accord but there are more Mondeo’s about to choose from and they are a little cheaper.

Oh yeah the old shape Accord (which I’ve assumed you’re talking about given the price range) doesn’t have a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) but the newer one does. Not sure about the other cars you mention but I do know they can go to shit and need cleaning or replacing if you do lots of local stop start driving where the engine never gets up to temperature.

Knackers. Turbo issue diagnosed and fixed for £72 inc VAT 😕 I’ll never get a new car at this rate!

When they sold me The Mighty Vectra I wish they would have said that it was immortal.

I’d go for a Mondeo over a Focus any day.

They are cheaper to buy, better specced, more room, drive better.

Also agree that at £6k < there is very little difference in purchase price between petrol and diesel.